When knight needs to be saved
by BitterWonderland
Summary: It all started innocently, with a simple conversation during one of Pinkie Pie's parties where Shining Armor met Big MacIntosh.
1. Meeting

**/ I know that Shining Armor is married to princess Cadence, and I like her a lot, but I still couldn't resist writing this fanfic. :) /**

It all started one quiet and peaceful day in the Ponyville, a town in Equestria, where all three types of ponies; earth ponies, unicorns and pegasi lived together, not minding the differences between their and other types. Pinkie Pie, the famous party pony known over the town and wider, decided to do what she does best. She organized a party, of course! This time, she decided to invite not just her five best friends, but also their siblings. Younger or older, it didn't matter. She just wanted everypony to have fun, like she always did. Even though two of her best friends, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash did not have any siblings, they still supported the idea. Rainbow Dash decided to invite a young pegasus filly she knew, who was almost like a little sister to her. "I'll just go with this little filly," blue mare cheerfully said while ruffling Scootaloo's short tomboyish mane with her hoof, making the filly laugh, giggle and chuckle at the same time. Fluttershy decided to bring her little bunny Angel instead of the sibling she didn't have.

Pinkie sent all the invitations to everyone she wanted to attend the party and started waiting impatiently. The day before the party, she decorated the house to make sure everything is ready for tomorrow. She put a lot of effort in that, but it really payed off! The atmosphere was nice. Everypony was there! Applejack with her older brother Big McIntosh and little sister Applebloom, Rainbow Dash with Scootaloo, Rarity with her little Sweetie Belle, Fluttershy with angel. Even though Pinkie's sister Maud Pie wasn't the type of pony who likes parties, she still came, mostly because of her sister. And even Shining Armor, Twilight Sparkle's older brother who was also the captain of the Canterlot Royal Guard got a day off just to come here with his little sister. That was where he met the stallion with a red coat who will one day mean much more to him than he could ever imagine.

Shining Armor was a young male unicorn pony with pure white coat and cyan eyes. His mane and tail were three shades of blue. Blue with dark blue and light blue streaks. He might have been smaller than most of the Guards, but that didn't mean that he didn't have the strength and agility equal, if not better than theirs. Tall white horn stood proud on his forehead, parting his forelock into two sections. Like all other adult ponies, he had something called "cutie mark." Cutie mark was the mark ponies had on their rumps. None of them were born with it. It appeared when a pony discovered a certain characteristic that made her/him unique. Shining Armor's was a purple shield with a huge pink star with six points, similar to his sister's cutie mark. The shield was topped by three blue stars. He knew that it was his destiny to be part of the Royal Guard. If ponies knew about guardian angels, they would sure say that he looks like one of them. And acts, too. He was kind, polite, protective, loyal and well manered, but that didn't mean that he would hesitate to act if it was needed. Mares admired him and stallions respected him. Twilight sure was lucky to have a brother like him. Since Shining Armor and Big McIntosh were only males on this party, their younger sisters and Pinkie, encouraged them to go and talk to each other about "colt stuff."

The unicorn was practically pushed by Pinkie into other male's direction. Big McIntosh looked at him. He seemed to be almost uninterested in their surroundings and maybe even in him, even though he was standing right in front of him. Shining Armor swallowed a small lump that formed in his throat. What was he supposed to say? How was he supposed to start the conversation? Maybe Big McIntosh didn't want to talk to him? Maybe he simply wanted to be left alone? Shining Armor looked at Pinkie, asking for any kind of explanation or support, but the enthusiastic pink mare simply winked and went to talk to other guests. He had no other choice. He looked at another stallion, studying him from head to hooves. Big McIntosh indeed was big. He was taller than Shining Armor. The hard work on the farm made him stronger too. Shining Armor couldn't stop staring at those muscular legs and shoulders. He didn't usually stare at others. He would restrain himself from making such an impolite action, but Big McIntosh seemed to be an exception. But luckily, Big McIntosh seemed to be oblivious until Shining Armor started speaking. It would have gotten awkward otherwise. "So... nice party, isn't it?" unicorn asked, trying to start the conversation, but failing miserably. Earth pony blew his fiery orange mane out of his half closed green eyes that made him look bored all the time and blinked. "Eeeyup!" he simply answered. "Um... do you like parties like this?" The answer was same. "Eeeyup!" Shining Armor held in a sigh and scratched the back of his head with his blue hoof. He didn't want to be annoying. But something made him want to talk to this stallion and that wasn't just because of their sisters. Speaking of sisters... This was a party for siblings, right? "So, Applejack and Applebloom are your sisters, right?" he soon asked. Answer still didn't change. Big McIntosh sure was a laconic pony of few words. "Twilight Sparkle is my sister," Shining Armor didn't give up just yet. And it was a good thing that he didn't give up so quickly, because he finally got the answer that wasn't a simple "eeeyup." Big McIntosh nodded, looking at Twilight for a moment. "She is a nice filly. Kind of like Applejack," he said. "Agreed," Shining Armor responded, smiling a little. Still, he decided not to get too carried away by this little triumph. He didn't even break the ice.

"You work on a farm, right?" he asked. "Eeeyup!" Luckily, Big McIntosh didn't stop there. "And you are a captain of the Royal Guard?" Shining Armor was surprised. "How do you know?" "A.J. told me." It was obvious that A.J. was Applejack. "That's impressive." Shining Armor scratched the back of his head while blushing slightly in embarrassment. "Thank you." For a moment, he wondered why did such a simple sentence said by Big McIntosh suddenly make him blush, even though it barely changed Big McIntosh's facial expression, but he pushed that thought aside. They talked for some more. It was just a chatter, but he managed to get the other stallion to say more than just "eeeyup" or "nope." "Wow, I've never seen mah big brother talk that much," Applejack told him later, only half joking. He spent the rest of the evening hanging out with his own sister and other ponies there. But, a certain pony didn't want to leave his mind.


	2. A small walk in Ponyville

When the party ended, Shining Armor and Twilight Sparkle went to Twilight Sparkle's place. Luckily, Shining Armor didn't have to go back to his duty in Canterlot right away. He took a five days off so he could be with Twilight. The two used to be very close until she moved to Ponyville. Since then, a small wall started growing between them. But, Shining Armor loved her. She was his little sister, after all. He decided to break that wall before it grows tall enough to prevent them to get to one another. He wanted to spend more time with her, but that wasn't always possible because he had a lot of work to do. Being in Royal Guard wasn't easy. Especially if you were the captain. Even if there wasn't any particular danger threatening to attack every moment, there was always work to do. And Twilight was princess Celestia's student, so she was also busy. They stayed in touch, sending each other letters now and then, but that wasn't enough. Not even close. Shining Armor really wanted to see Twilight and talk to her. In person. Not only through countless letters that might or might not reach her. He wanted to strenghten their bond. He wanted them to be close again. And he was here, in Ponyvile now. This seemed to be a nice opportunity to finally do that.

The siblings spent the first day alone. Only two of them (and Spike, of course). They talked, practised magic and just enjoyed their time together, like they used to when they were younger, knowing that today, they will have no duties nor work to distract them. But of course, they weren't in the house the whole day. Twilight showed her brother around Ponyville. They also went to the museum dedicated to Starswirl the Bearded. Shining Armor loved the every second that day. If only it could last forever... It felt like they had been together that whole time and like they had never parted ways. The next day, Shining Armor didn't hang out only with Twilight, but her friends as well. That was fun too. Her friends had different personalities and interests, which made him wonder how did they even end up together, but all in all, they seemed nice. Twilight was in good hooves.

But, the third day, he wasn't too lucky. Even though he could dedicate the whole day to Twilight, that wasn't mutual. Twilight didn't have time. She needed to do something for princess Celestia. And it was urgent. Shining Armor would probably be needed as well, but he had found the replacement while he was still in Canterlot. The bright young stallion could manage without him for a couple of days. "I'm sorry, Shining Armor. I have to do that for princess. She is counting on me." Shining Armor nodded his head. "I know, Twiley. It's your duty after all. I will be fine on my own." He could take a walk. Twilight gave him a tour during the first day, so he was sure that he won't get lost. With memory like his, he didn't have to worry. He hugged Twilight goodbye and wished her good luck. Once she got out of the house, he went to the balcony, together with Spike to wave her as long as they could see her. Until she disappeared from horizon. Shining Armor sighed. And, he wasn't the only one. "I know that it's necessary and I sometimes like being alone, but... I miss her when she goes away like that," little dragon said, staring in the distance. "She might sometimes stay more than a single day. Of course, she can send you a letter, saying that she might not get back while you are still here. But it's not the same without her." Shining Armor nodded. "That would be a pity. I finally got some free time." They stayed there, on the balcony for a few minutes, silence settled between them.

Until Shining Armor decided to break it. He looked at the dragon again. "Want to take a walk?" he asked. He kind of wanted to take it alone, but he didn't want to leave the little dragon alone. Besides, it might even be nicer with him. Spike nodded and smiled a little. "Sure," he said. The ponyville was bursting with life. Ponies were going around, buying things, hanging out, visiting each other... It was different from Canterlot. Very different. Shining Armor didn't fit in there. That was obvious. He was standing straight and his every move was steady, like he was taught. His alert ears were trying to absorb as much as they could, but all the noise here was just making a huge chaos in his head with incredible speed, forcing him to rub his temples in attempt to sort it out. Spike didn't see that. He would have asked him is he was fine otherwise. But, he suddenly raised both of his hands with a happy grin on his face, drawing Shining Armor's attention. "This is awesome! I'm going for a walk with Twilight's older brother," he said. Shining Armor smiled kindly. "I'm glad that that it makes you happy," he told him. He decided to relax and just act like everypony else. He didn't want to draw too much attention acting like a Royal Guard he is. This was a place where no one knew him and where he could just act casually. There were no threats here. Why would anypony want to attack this small village? It looked nice, but that wasn't the only place in Equestria that looked nice. He lowered his guard a little, but didn't let it disappear completely. Just in case.

"Do you take walks like this often?" he asked Spike. "I often help Twilight, but sometimes I do take walks. Especially if I need to bring something," Spike answered cheerfully and chuckled. _"He is a nice little dragon,"_ Shining Armor thought. They kept walking and talking as they did so. Until a red stallion who was selling apples caught his eye. Big MacIntosh was looking at him, but he looked away as soon as he could when Shining Armor noticed that. But, the way Big MacIntosh was looking at him... It made his heart skip a beat. He wasn't sure why. Is everything okay?" Spike asked. Shining Armor noticed that he had stopped walking. "Oh, don't worry. Everything is fine," he said and kept walking again. But, at one point, he turned to look at Big MacIntosh again, recieving a wink from the stallion.


End file.
